Here is a little video of Cap from this past week. He is tighter on the bye side, so I set it up with sheep held on hay so that he would have to run out around the vernal pool on the bye side. The only intervention from me is that I am walking forward up the fetch line a little bit before I send him. My body pressure must be different when I am videoing, because this was the worst outrun of the three or four that we did in that session! (LOL) I'm really happy with Cap and he is super fun to work with. He's a very willing partner and wants to please.
Saturday, January 26, 2019
This Week's Themes
For the past week, I posted a favorite book for each of my daily themes.
Monday - Be Positive - was Vergil Holland's The Handler's Post
Tuesday - Be in the Moment was Jack Knox's new book, Learning Life's Lessons with Stock Dogs
Wednesday - Be Happy - was my all time favorite, Derek Scrimgeour's Talking Sheepdogs
Thursday - Be Kind - was Top Trainers Talk about Starting a Sheepdog
Friday - Dream Big - was A Way of Life, by Glyn Jones
Saturday- Sunday - Find Awe - was One Man's Way, by Austin Bennett, my second most favorite book
Wednesday, my birthday - I got to take 12-year old Coal to the veterinarian. He has a testicular tumor which needs to be removed (it is a neuter surgery). This was not something I was planning so it's a shift in our pathway that was unexpected. I am concerned about him handling the surgery and recuperation at his age, but everyone tells me it will be fine. I hope so ! His surgery is Monday. I would appreciate good vibes for him. The tumor was not there a month ago; it has come on really fast. We did a blood panel on him and a chest xray and all looks clear. I feel badly doing this to him, but I also can't leave it the way it is...the vets I know are all saying once it's gone, it's gone; that this type of tumor doesn't normally go into the rest of the body. I am hoping for the best, despite his age. So that's how I spent my birthday...wrapping my head around that. As a result I am going to pass on some of the dog events that I had planned for this spring in order to be able to pay for the surgery. Life takes a turn...and we roll with it.
Monday - Be Positive - was Vergil Holland's The Handler's Post
Tuesday - Be in the Moment was Jack Knox's new book, Learning Life's Lessons with Stock Dogs
Wednesday - Be Happy - was my all time favorite, Derek Scrimgeour's Talking Sheepdogs
Thursday - Be Kind - was Top Trainers Talk about Starting a Sheepdog
Friday - Dream Big - was A Way of Life, by Glyn Jones
Saturday- Sunday - Find Awe - was One Man's Way, by Austin Bennett, my second most favorite book
Wednesday, my birthday - I got to take 12-year old Coal to the veterinarian. He has a testicular tumor which needs to be removed (it is a neuter surgery). This was not something I was planning so it's a shift in our pathway that was unexpected. I am concerned about him handling the surgery and recuperation at his age, but everyone tells me it will be fine. I hope so ! His surgery is Monday. I would appreciate good vibes for him. The tumor was not there a month ago; it has come on really fast. We did a blood panel on him and a chest xray and all looks clear. I feel badly doing this to him, but I also can't leave it the way it is...the vets I know are all saying once it's gone, it's gone; that this type of tumor doesn't normally go into the rest of the body. I am hoping for the best, despite his age. So that's how I spent my birthday...wrapping my head around that. As a result I am going to pass on some of the dog events that I had planned for this spring in order to be able to pay for the surgery. Life takes a turn...and we roll with it.
Sunday, January 20, 2019
Working With Spot
Here are some pictures of Spot and me working lambs in a very muddy field recently. He's not sure about these lambs and they like to stand and stare at the dogs. I'm working on building Spot's confidence with them.
Ryme will walk right into these lambs and they move right off of him. I wish Spot had that kind of authority and it is too bad that Ryme is now ten years old...sigh. I used Ryme to work them around a little bit first and then sorted some off to get down to six, to work with Spot and Cap. We had a good session. I made sure Spot was giving me nice open flanks, but also worked close at hand with him so that he felt encouraged to walk into their faces and turn them. With Cap, I am forgiving him a little on the fine points with these sheep because I want him to gain confidence in moving them. It is one of my main goals to get the dogs out on different sheep and not always on broke sheep. Working only broke sheep for so long is the source of many of our troubles. I'm doing all I can to fulfill that goal.
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| We have shed these two lambs away from four others. They are starting to turn to move away from Spot. |
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| Spot moving the two along nicely. |
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| I like the 'happy' in this photo, even though it is not well-focused. |
Saturday, January 19, 2019
It's the Weekend; Find Awe
It's the weekend; that means it is time to find awe. I hope everyone finds their own version of awe. I will be looking at the small things as well as the bigger picture!
We had the biggest rain/wind storm of the season so far, this past week, on Wednesday and Thursday. That has left everything very muddy and wet, and standing water in the fields where the sheep are.
We did get out to work a little one evening. Ryme can do a little bit of work again now, so I used him to sort down the sheep group a bit. He isn't physically up for a full session yet, can help me if I am smart about it. I need to get smarter! LOL!
Then I got Cap. The remaining sheep (about 20) were spread way out, grazing on the wet grass. I sent Cap for them and he got about half. Then I was able to send him back for the rest. No look back yet, just me walking forward and focusing on the remaining sheep and turning his attention back to them. He is so eager and he is a joy to work with. That new shiny penny, that is all fun and opening up new things. The forecast was not for rain but it did start to shower when I was out with Cap. Of course I had decided that I would not need my rain pants. Dumb! But luckily it did not rain hard on us. Cap did not care. He was enjoying the work too much.
I then traded Cap for Spot. We did some of the same things; some small gathers, driving, and penning. Spot was working well. I really have to watch my attitude with Spot. We have more baggage, due to past failures and frustrations...and I know darn well that if I lose my confidence in him or my patience with him, he will lose his. Friday means "dream big"; part of my dream is to find joy in working Spot again. I am the one who needs to change. Spot and I will be going to some of the smaller events where we can gain some confidence and when I work him I will be focusing on trying to stay in the moment with him. If Ryme can do some of the prep work then there is less pressure on Spot, and we can just go out and work.
We had the biggest rain/wind storm of the season so far, this past week, on Wednesday and Thursday. That has left everything very muddy and wet, and standing water in the fields where the sheep are.
We did get out to work a little one evening. Ryme can do a little bit of work again now, so I used him to sort down the sheep group a bit. He isn't physically up for a full session yet, can help me if I am smart about it. I need to get smarter! LOL!
Then I got Cap. The remaining sheep (about 20) were spread way out, grazing on the wet grass. I sent Cap for them and he got about half. Then I was able to send him back for the rest. No look back yet, just me walking forward and focusing on the remaining sheep and turning his attention back to them. He is so eager and he is a joy to work with. That new shiny penny, that is all fun and opening up new things. The forecast was not for rain but it did start to shower when I was out with Cap. Of course I had decided that I would not need my rain pants. Dumb! But luckily it did not rain hard on us. Cap did not care. He was enjoying the work too much.
I then traded Cap for Spot. We did some of the same things; some small gathers, driving, and penning. Spot was working well. I really have to watch my attitude with Spot. We have more baggage, due to past failures and frustrations...and I know darn well that if I lose my confidence in him or my patience with him, he will lose his. Friday means "dream big"; part of my dream is to find joy in working Spot again. I am the one who needs to change. Spot and I will be going to some of the smaller events where we can gain some confidence and when I work him I will be focusing on trying to stay in the moment with him. If Ryme can do some of the prep work then there is less pressure on Spot, and we can just go out and work.
Tuesday, January 15, 2019
Tuesday Is...
It's Tuesday, and that means being in the moment. This is a hard one for me. The dogs find it easy but my brain is always whirling around ahead, behind or anywhere but focuses on what is in front of me. I am trying to train it to be otherwise. I tried today to just notice the small things, like textures of wet pavement (it's raining).
No sheepdog work today, but last night we had a pretty good session. I was pushing it trying to get the chores done, work the dogs, and get on the way home before darkness and rain came in. Right now I have about an hour or just a little more to work dogs on week days, with sunset approximately 5:15 PM this week, plus or minus.
Without a stock handler, I first tried to put some sheep out on hay for Spot, to try out my system.
Then I would hurry off with Spot to a point where I could send him on an outrun before the sheep ran home. This worked ok, not as great as with a stock handler and dog but it was better than nothing. When I switched to Cap (after getting more hay!), I was able to send Cap on some of the longest gathers that I have done at that particular field. I was pretty stoked, and didn't care that it had started to rain! Cap was pretty stoked, too. I could send him around some of the vernal pools which made him kick out naturally and get wider and deeper without me having to do anything...which is a huge bonus. Doing our lesson homework, as best we can!
We won't be able to work for a few days due to a big storm coming through. I'm glad to have a little success though and something to look forward to.
Ryme got to play cleanup and put all the sheep away. He was super happy! You can see it on his face!
No sheepdog work today, but last night we had a pretty good session. I was pushing it trying to get the chores done, work the dogs, and get on the way home before darkness and rain came in. Right now I have about an hour or just a little more to work dogs on week days, with sunset approximately 5:15 PM this week, plus or minus.
Without a stock handler, I first tried to put some sheep out on hay for Spot, to try out my system.
Then I would hurry off with Spot to a point where I could send him on an outrun before the sheep ran home. This worked ok, not as great as with a stock handler and dog but it was better than nothing. When I switched to Cap (after getting more hay!), I was able to send Cap on some of the longest gathers that I have done at that particular field. I was pretty stoked, and didn't care that it had started to rain! Cap was pretty stoked, too. I could send him around some of the vernal pools which made him kick out naturally and get wider and deeper without me having to do anything...which is a huge bonus. Doing our lesson homework, as best we can!
We won't be able to work for a few days due to a big storm coming through. I'm glad to have a little success though and something to look forward to.
Ryme got to play cleanup and put all the sheep away. He was super happy! You can see it on his face!
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| Two happy older dogs; Ryme (10) in the front and Coal (12) in the back. |
Monday, January 14, 2019
A Couple of Small Achievements
It's Monday. Today's theme is Be Positive.
With that in mind, I'll report that the dogs and I have achieved a couple of good things.
First, I worked Ryme last night for a little while, just easy stuff on a large group of sheep in the arena field, and he was 98% sound on that left shoulder, both before and after. We just walked the sheep around, turning them this way and that and walking some more. No sharp turns or much running yet for Ryme. Things are looking up. He was very happy!
Second, it is always concerning, when we get a young dog far enough along in their training, to begin picking up their sheep off of a stock handler and setout dog. A few dogs take this really personally and react negatively. Most dogs, however, take it pretty much in stride but need a few exposures to feel comfortable with it. I'm pleased to report that Cap had his first real formal training session, taking sheep off of a stock handler and her dog, yesterday. And, the sheep were held on hay, as well. A few weeks ago, we tried (successfully) to have a handler and his dog just standing there in the field with us while I worked the sheep around them, with Cap, but they were not holding the sheep. Cap did not seem to notice them there. Now yesterday, he did notice the handler and her dog, but bent out around them correctly and picked up his sheep, bringing them to me. This was super helpful for me with the outrun practice that we are supposed to be doing, via our lessons. Now the sheep set on hay was a bit more of a challenge, as the sheep did not want to move; we will have to work more on Cap being able to just walk in and make them move when they do not want to. But that is a topic for another day. For the most part he was able to bring them and in one case I walked toward him to provide more of a helping presence, and then he walked right in.
Sorry, no photos this time! :-)
With that in mind, I'll report that the dogs and I have achieved a couple of good things.
First, I worked Ryme last night for a little while, just easy stuff on a large group of sheep in the arena field, and he was 98% sound on that left shoulder, both before and after. We just walked the sheep around, turning them this way and that and walking some more. No sharp turns or much running yet for Ryme. Things are looking up. He was very happy!
Second, it is always concerning, when we get a young dog far enough along in their training, to begin picking up their sheep off of a stock handler and setout dog. A few dogs take this really personally and react negatively. Most dogs, however, take it pretty much in stride but need a few exposures to feel comfortable with it. I'm pleased to report that Cap had his first real formal training session, taking sheep off of a stock handler and her dog, yesterday. And, the sheep were held on hay, as well. A few weeks ago, we tried (successfully) to have a handler and his dog just standing there in the field with us while I worked the sheep around them, with Cap, but they were not holding the sheep. Cap did not seem to notice them there. Now yesterday, he did notice the handler and her dog, but bent out around them correctly and picked up his sheep, bringing them to me. This was super helpful for me with the outrun practice that we are supposed to be doing, via our lessons. Now the sheep set on hay was a bit more of a challenge, as the sheep did not want to move; we will have to work more on Cap being able to just walk in and make them move when they do not want to. But that is a topic for another day. For the most part he was able to bring them and in one case I walked toward him to provide more of a helping presence, and then he walked right in.
Sorry, no photos this time! :-)
Sunday, January 13, 2019
Kicking Off A New Year...
I was kind of searching around for something mentally positive to kick off the new year...and happened to watch a "Facebook Live"event with Diana Nyad. She listed the six daily themes she is going to focus on, weekly...and I thought to myself, "there is no reason why I can't do this!"
Monday: Be Positive
Tuesday: Be in The Moment (eyes wide open)
Wednesday: Be Happy (have fun)
Thursday: Be Kind
Friday: Dream Big (No limitations!)
The weekend: Find Awe
"Don't waste a moment!", she says...
This past week I started off, posting each theme daily on my Facebook. Folks seemed to get into it! By Friday, people were asking me, "what is today?":-) it is fun..I will try to keep it up. One can train their thought processes... Some of these were easier for me than others. Some were very hard. It will take a lot of work. It is also, if you will, a lesson in staying focused.
If you haven't read Diana Nyad's book, "Find A Way", I highly recommend it.
The hardest two for me this week were, Being in the Moment, and Be Happy. Be Positive was surprisingly easier than I first anticipated.
Saturday finding awe was pretty easy as we had beautiful skies on our trip over to Zamora and back for lessons, and all day while we were outside. It is nice to have rain but it is also lovely to have a break here and there with some sun, to dry things out.
Cap's lesson was again all about the gather. There is a lot of progress, I am told, but it is hard for me to see because I am seeing him every day. Overall though there is improvement and maturity from our last lesson. He is super willing to try for me and does a lot of nice things. I need to get him more on the whistles. He drives beautifully for short distances. I am not emphasizing the driving but we do it now and then. We also put sheep through the race, as a confidence-building exercise. I will do this a little more at home, and select the sheep carefully for it so that none turn on him. He got head butted by a lamb recently which has set us back a little bit. We will work through it and get our confidence back. Yesterday's lesson was a big confidence builder for me and he seemed unaffected by any issues. It was very muddy! In that situation it is so nice to have a smooth coat...
One night this past week, I let Ryme have a teensy short turn on the sheep, just to check in with him and see how he is doing. He appeared sound afterwards, so maybe we have turned the corner on his shoulder injury. I will let him have a short sheep work session today. I know he will be happy about that!
Find Awe!
Monday: Be Positive
Tuesday: Be in The Moment (eyes wide open)
Wednesday: Be Happy (have fun)
Thursday: Be Kind
Friday: Dream Big (No limitations!)
The weekend: Find Awe
"Don't waste a moment!", she says...
This past week I started off, posting each theme daily on my Facebook. Folks seemed to get into it! By Friday, people were asking me, "what is today?":-) it is fun..I will try to keep it up. One can train their thought processes... Some of these were easier for me than others. Some were very hard. It will take a lot of work. It is also, if you will, a lesson in staying focused.
If you haven't read Diana Nyad's book, "Find A Way", I highly recommend it.
The hardest two for me this week were, Being in the Moment, and Be Happy. Be Positive was surprisingly easier than I first anticipated.
Saturday finding awe was pretty easy as we had beautiful skies on our trip over to Zamora and back for lessons, and all day while we were outside. It is nice to have rain but it is also lovely to have a break here and there with some sun, to dry things out.
Cap's lesson was again all about the gather. There is a lot of progress, I am told, but it is hard for me to see because I am seeing him every day. Overall though there is improvement and maturity from our last lesson. He is super willing to try for me and does a lot of nice things. I need to get him more on the whistles. He drives beautifully for short distances. I am not emphasizing the driving but we do it now and then. We also put sheep through the race, as a confidence-building exercise. I will do this a little more at home, and select the sheep carefully for it so that none turn on him. He got head butted by a lamb recently which has set us back a little bit. We will work through it and get our confidence back. Yesterday's lesson was a big confidence builder for me and he seemed unaffected by any issues. It was very muddy! In that situation it is so nice to have a smooth coat...
One night this past week, I let Ryme have a teensy short turn on the sheep, just to check in with him and see how he is doing. He appeared sound afterwards, so maybe we have turned the corner on his shoulder injury. I will let him have a short sheep work session today. I know he will be happy about that!
Find Awe!
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| Cap |
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| Spot in action |
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| Cap |
Sunday, January 6, 2019
Rainy Sunday
It's been pouring rain, now, for over 24 hours. This is a good thing in the big picture. We need the rain. I don't like when it all comes at once, however, and causes flooding. I'm not working the dogs today and they are stir crazy... but it's just too muddy.
Spot is back to work after his neuter. There was a huge glitch though, about five days into his recovery. His surgery was on a Friday and all seemed well. By Wednesday, he was acting a little weird. But by Thursday, he was obviously in discomfort. When I checked him out, up close and personal, I found that his scrotum was all inflamed, swollen and the skin on the outside was in terrible shape as if it had been burned. There were infected scabs coming off and it was awful looking. I put in a call to the vet and we did get in to see the vet almost at the end of the day. They cleaned it up, prescribed antibiotics, topical ointment and advised me to put him back on the pain meds that had been sent home with us from the surgery. What an ordeal! The poor dog. The incision looked just fine, but the scrotum, was a completely different story. I have never had this happen with a dog and in all my time working for a vet for a few years, never saw anything like this. No explanation was given for this but my own interpretation is that they were a little bit too overzealous in prepping him for surgery. I felt so bad for him but it is all healed up now. He is working fine and I am getting him back in shape. Whew.
Ryme has been lame since he hurt himself playing with the other dogs, on October 22. The injury is up in the left shoulder. Slowly, he is returning to soundness. I am hoping by January 22 or so, that he will be able to work. He wants to work...but I am being super careful as I don't want a setback.
Cap is working well. We've had a couple of lessons. He is so much fun to work with. When weather and daylight allow, I am working the dogs as much as I can. I am also trying very hard to get them out on different sheep and different places. This is a huge battle to try to overcome. Cap needs to get on different sheep but not feel overfaced...I want him to retain his confidence. We're mainly working on his gathers, as he wants to drive...driving will not be a problem. The gathers need to be encouraged and built up...and the rest will fall into place. He is so much fun. :-)
Coal is Coal...12 years old and looney as ever. He is the only dog I have allowed to sleep on my bed, for some time now. The other three dogs sleep (and eat) in crates. Coal has been barely able to jump up there for a while and I knew the day was coming when he would not make it up there. I moved a big round Costco bed into my room for him, right next to the bed so that he could start to transition to a bed on the floor. Sometime between Christmas and New Year's, Coal decided that he could sleep on the big Costco bed on the floor. It is bittersweet for me but he seems happy enough.
I read the new Jack Knox book. It is charming. The first half is a memoir or autobiography and is quite interesting about his young years in Scotland. The second half is (roughly) more his thoughts on various training and sheepdog topics. For those who know or have worked with Jack, it will make a lot of sense. I am not sure how much sense it will make to those who do not know him, but the book is him. It's definitely quite a legacy.
I'm looking at the schedule of sheepdog events in our area for the spring. There are some small local trials, weather permitting, in January and February...and a work day for the revitalized NCWSA club at the end of January. I am excited about that club getting something going again! Then there are all the biggie hill/range ewe trials, which I do not plan to enter Spot in, this year. We entered them all, last year, and pretty much failed at all. I do not want to do that again. We will enter here and there where it seems feasible, and explore some other options, like AHBA. I want to actually run some courses and not just write a big check to retire (RT) and feel frustrated. It is not good for Spot's confidence, nor mine. My other choice, is just to not trial. There will be some of that, too. I still want to learn, run my dogs the best I can, and be the best shepherd and handler that I can be. But there is a huge gap. I will enjoy it where and how I can.
Spot is back to work after his neuter. There was a huge glitch though, about five days into his recovery. His surgery was on a Friday and all seemed well. By Wednesday, he was acting a little weird. But by Thursday, he was obviously in discomfort. When I checked him out, up close and personal, I found that his scrotum was all inflamed, swollen and the skin on the outside was in terrible shape as if it had been burned. There were infected scabs coming off and it was awful looking. I put in a call to the vet and we did get in to see the vet almost at the end of the day. They cleaned it up, prescribed antibiotics, topical ointment and advised me to put him back on the pain meds that had been sent home with us from the surgery. What an ordeal! The poor dog. The incision looked just fine, but the scrotum, was a completely different story. I have never had this happen with a dog and in all my time working for a vet for a few years, never saw anything like this. No explanation was given for this but my own interpretation is that they were a little bit too overzealous in prepping him for surgery. I felt so bad for him but it is all healed up now. He is working fine and I am getting him back in shape. Whew.
Ryme has been lame since he hurt himself playing with the other dogs, on October 22. The injury is up in the left shoulder. Slowly, he is returning to soundness. I am hoping by January 22 or so, that he will be able to work. He wants to work...but I am being super careful as I don't want a setback.
Cap is working well. We've had a couple of lessons. He is so much fun to work with. When weather and daylight allow, I am working the dogs as much as I can. I am also trying very hard to get them out on different sheep and different places. This is a huge battle to try to overcome. Cap needs to get on different sheep but not feel overfaced...I want him to retain his confidence. We're mainly working on his gathers, as he wants to drive...driving will not be a problem. The gathers need to be encouraged and built up...and the rest will fall into place. He is so much fun. :-)
Coal is Coal...12 years old and looney as ever. He is the only dog I have allowed to sleep on my bed, for some time now. The other three dogs sleep (and eat) in crates. Coal has been barely able to jump up there for a while and I knew the day was coming when he would not make it up there. I moved a big round Costco bed into my room for him, right next to the bed so that he could start to transition to a bed on the floor. Sometime between Christmas and New Year's, Coal decided that he could sleep on the big Costco bed on the floor. It is bittersweet for me but he seems happy enough.
I read the new Jack Knox book. It is charming. The first half is a memoir or autobiography and is quite interesting about his young years in Scotland. The second half is (roughly) more his thoughts on various training and sheepdog topics. For those who know or have worked with Jack, it will make a lot of sense. I am not sure how much sense it will make to those who do not know him, but the book is him. It's definitely quite a legacy.
I'm looking at the schedule of sheepdog events in our area for the spring. There are some small local trials, weather permitting, in January and February...and a work day for the revitalized NCWSA club at the end of January. I am excited about that club getting something going again! Then there are all the biggie hill/range ewe trials, which I do not plan to enter Spot in, this year. We entered them all, last year, and pretty much failed at all. I do not want to do that again. We will enter here and there where it seems feasible, and explore some other options, like AHBA. I want to actually run some courses and not just write a big check to retire (RT) and feel frustrated. It is not good for Spot's confidence, nor mine. My other choice, is just to not trial. There will be some of that, too. I still want to learn, run my dogs the best I can, and be the best shepherd and handler that I can be. But there is a huge gap. I will enjoy it where and how I can.
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